Dempsey: 'Zero tolerance' for hazing, in wake of Chen charges

Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, took to Facebook and Twitter to condemn bullying and hazing in the ranks.

“We are currently investigating several allegations of hazing within our ranks,” Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, reported in a posting yesterday on his Facebook site and Twitter.

“These appear to be isolated instances of misconduct, but I want to be very clear: hazing is simply intolerable,” Dempsey said in his message. “It undermines our values, tarnishes our profession and erodes the trust that bonds us.”

“This cruel form of misconduct requires an audience to achieve its intended effect of humiliation,” he noted. “Every service member should be aware that participating in hazing or even observing it without reporting it are both wrong. We are duty-bound to protect one another from hazing in any form.”

Dempsey posted his message after the Army brought charges this week against eight soldiers allegedly involved in the death of Army Pvt. Danny Chen. Chen, an infantryman deployed to southern Afghanistan with Company C, 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division, was found dead in a guard tower Oct. 3 from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.